Offense fails Zags
ANCHORAGE, Alaska – For the second straight night, Gonzaga had the support of the majority of the 8,000-plus at Sullivan Arena, but this time the Bulldogs didn’t give the fans much reason to cheer.
The 14th-ranked Zags stumbled late in the first half and then had a frightful stretch offensively at the outset of the second. Texas Tech took advantage of both of GU’s lulls and rolled to a 73-63 men’s basketball win Friday in the semifinals of the Great Alaska Shootout.
“That was just a sound beating,” Gonzaga coach Mark Few said. “Going in, we thought we would have an edge in rebounding, but their energy, desire and approach to the game showed up in the rebounding.
“We could never get anything going offensively. We showed some pride at the end and got some stops and got it down to a respectable number. Then we’d come down and turn it over.
“We have some work to do, that’s for sure.”
Gonzaga (4-1) faces Virginia Tech (2-1) in the third-place game tonight at 7 PST. Butler (5-0) outlasted the Hokies 84-78 in overtime in the other semifinal. Butler (5-0) and Texas Tech (4-1) play for the title.
Texas Tech closed the half with a 20-5 surge to take a 41-31 lead. GU had defensive issues throughout the half and they were amplified during the Red Raiders’ spurt.
Guard Alan Voskuil, who scored Texas Tech’s first 10 points of the game, hit a wide-open 3-pointer. A couple possessions later, Charlie Burgess had so much time, he took an extra second or two before making an uncontested 3 from the top of the key, giving the Red Raiders a 29-26 edge.
Burgess then beat his defender on a cut to the basket, resulting in two free throws, and banked in a driving 10-footer. Jeremy Pargo made his only field goal of the game, but the Zags left Voskuil open again and he connected on another 3-pointer.
It looked like Gonzaga might minimize the damage late in the half when it closed within six, but Martin Zeno drove and fed D’walyn Roberts, who completed a three-point play. Roberts’ tip-in just before the buzzer hiked Texas Tech’s lead to 10.
Ten first-half turnovers bogged down the Bulldogs’ offense. GU had a couple of six-point runs, both fueled by Micah Downs, who had 12 first-half points, but the Red Raiders responded each time, rattling off seven- and 12-point runs, respectively.
It would get worse for GU before it got better. The Zags shook up the starting lineup, inserting Robert Sacre for Abdullahi Kuso, but Gonzaga had six turnovers and missed two shot attempts in the first 31/2 minutes. Gonzaga’s first bucket of the second half came on Kuso’s putback at the 14:31 mark.
By then, Texas Tech had moved in front by 17 and it would have been a wider margin but the Red Raiders had some offensive issues of their own.
“They wanted it a lot more than us,” Few said. “We turned the ball over on 7 of 8 possessions at the start of the second half. This team has to understand you have to make a change after that second turnover. It wasn’t against defensive pressure. We were just serving it into the net.”
GU’s backcourt of Pargo and Matt Bouldin had a rough night. Official stats weren’t available immediately after the game because of a computer malfunction, but with four minutes remaining the two had combined for 14 turnovers and just six assists.
“We played pretty well defensively, with the exception of the inside play with the post,” Red Raiders coach Bob Knight said. “We just tried to stay into their guards. We thought the key for us was Pargo and Bouldin. If we could make it tough for them, then that was going to be a key factor for us.”
Gonzaga made two runs in the final five minutes, closing to 64-57 on David Pendergraft’s 3 and 67-61 after a Bouldin basket. Voskuil drove and fed Esmir Rizvic for an easy layup to restore an eight-point lead.
Voskuil finished with five 3-pointers and 28 points. Reserves Roberts and Burgess combined for 22 points and 10 boards. For the first time this season Gonzaga was outrebounded, 33-27.
(22) Butler 84, Virginia Tech 78 (OT): Mike Green scored 12 points in overtime to lead the Bulldogs (5-0) past the Hokies (2-1) in the other semifinal.